Five Takeaways: Paul VI vs. St. Andrew’s Scrimmage

<p><em>FAIRFAX, VA</em> – PAUL VI and St. Andrew’s Episcopal matched up in a preseason scrimmage on Tuesday evening, and Prep Hoops was in the gym to observe. The Panthers impressed with their defense all across the board and were able to thrive as a result. Here we recap this preseason contest by discussing five takeaways.</p> <h5><strong>PVI GUARDS LEAD THE WAY</strong></h5> <p>’20 <strong>Jeremy Roach</strong>, ’21 <strong>Trevor Keels</strong>, and ’22 <strong>Dug McDaniel</strong> all looked physically stronger and set the tone early with their defense. Roach and McDaniel applied tremendous pressure on the ball while Keels cleaned up the boards. All three played with high tempo looking to get out and run. ’20 <strong>Will Paige</strong> came in off the bench and kept the pedal to the metal by picking up full court and keeping the pace up offensively. Roach and Keels looked good with the ball in their hands respectively. They both looked to get downhill aggressively but were also a constant threat to shoot from distance.<strong> </strong>'23 <strong>DeShawn Harris-Smith</strong> is a big left-handed guard who played with a high motor and picked up on the cues that his teammates were dropping. </p> <h5><strong>SMALLS STANDS OUT</strong></h5> <p><strong>Colin Smalls </strong>was hands down the top performer for St. Andrew’s. The American commit caught fire early and stayed hot throughout the scrimmage. Smalls hit several threes but also mixed it up inside the arc with his one-dribble pull-up and aggressive drives to the rim.</p> <h5><strong>PANTHERS FRONTCOURT COMMITTEE IMPRESSES</strong></h5> <p>’21’s <strong>Tyler Coleman</strong>, <strong>Jack Jensen, </strong>and <strong>Luke Triggs</strong> each found ways to make an impact on this game. Coleman played with a high motor and rebounded well on both ends of the floor. Jensen displayed good lateral quickness which helps him defend the perimeter. He blocked a shot as a result of his length, coordination and timing. Jensen was a vocal presence defensively but also worked hard on the offensive glass and tipped a missed shot in. Triggs is a good post scorer who showed nice touch around the basket.<strong> </strong></p> <h5><strong>WILLIAMS CONTINUES TO SHOW SIGNS</strong></h5> <p><strong>Benny Williams</strong> is beginning to fill out his 6-foot-8 frame and assert himself inside the arc. He had a couple of dunks right at the rim off the vert but is also a legitimate lob threat and a crafty finisher in general. Williams played with good effort defensively. He hustled back in transition and was able to challenge shots at the rim.</p> <h5><strong>FREEMAN THE X-FACTOR</strong></h5> <p>When <strong>Josiah Freeman</strong> is hitting shots, PVI becomes so much harder to defend. The Panthers run a ton of ball screens. Their guards do a good job getting downhill, making the defense collapse and kicking out to Freeman. The Buffalo commit will have plenty of room to operate. Anytime he has a huge game it will likely be a good omen for his team.</p>